


Thrill of an Endless Chase

by venomandchampagne (sushibunny)



Category: The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: Angst, But Not Much Oops, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Future Fic, Honeymoon, Monkeys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-01
Updated: 2018-01-01
Packaged: 2019-02-23 08:33:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,498
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13186332
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sushibunny/pseuds/venomandchampagne
Summary: A honeymoon is a time to be happy and celebrate.But that's the last thing Caroline feels like doing as she sits hunched in the sand, the tiny grains digging at her skin no match for the pain of a shattered heart.





	Thrill of an Endless Chase

**Author's Note:**

  * For [DelerithMoriwen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DelerithMoriwen/gifts).



> This probably isn't as angsty as you would like, but I hope you still enjoy it and my attempts at humor and brief monkey appearance!
> 
>  
> 
> I learned more about Bali writing this than I ever thought I would, so I guess that's something ;)

“This place is gorgeous,” Caroline breathed, taking in the pure, clear ocean water and black sandy beaches of the north shore of Bali.

“Well, they do call it ‘paradise’ after all, sweetheart,” Klaus said, grinning back at her from where he stood by the deck railing of their private villa, one Klaus had apparently bought specifically for their honeymoon- which made Caroline roll her eyes at him, even though the romantic in her practically swooned. She would never let Klaus know that though; his ego was big enough already.

Caroline was about to reply with a sarcastic remark when something caught her eye. “Oh my god, are those dolphins?”

Klaus chuckled. “As I said, love. Paradise.”

Her smile matched his as she moved over to join him, sighing in contentment even as the giddiness of being somewhere straight out of her dreams continued to spread through her entire being. Klaus wrapped an arm around her shoulders, tugging her into his side, a smooth and practiced move after all their years of being together- one that made her realize how perfectly they fit together.

“Would you like to explore the beach now, love? The dolphins are supposed to be quite friendly and used to people.” Klaus’ smile widened when Caroline looked up at him, excitement sparkling in her eyes. “Or… Would you perhaps like to start our honeymoon properly finally, since you refused to do so last night. For someone so adamant about tradition during our wedding ceremony, I am very surprised in you, Caroline,” he teased, lips curling into a smirk.

Caroline rolled her eyes before matching the tilt of his lips. “We were on a _plane_ , Klaus. I wasn’t going to christen our marriage by joining the Mile High Club in an airplane bathroom.”

“I wanted to charter a private jet, you were the one who insisted on flying _commercial_ , sweetheart,” he reminded her, distaste dripping off the word ‘commercial.’

“You already bought an entire freaking _villa_ Klaus! We’re only going to be here for two weeks! You probably would have bought the entire island if I had let you.”

Klaus frowned, looking out at the ocean contemplatively. “The president of Indonesia would most likely have declined. Although…”

Caroline couldn’t help but laugh. “Maybe you can put off buying countries until after our honeymoon, Klaus.”

“Technically it’s a province.”

Shaking her head in fond exasperation, Caroline pulled Klaus down by his lapels, ending the discussion with a kiss that quickly turned heated as both remembered why they were in Bali in the first place.

“I think the dolphins can wait,” she whispered against his lips, her own curling into a mischievous smile.

“Lead the way, Mrs. Mikaelson.”

* * *

 

The town of Lovina was smaller than most tourist towns, and Caroline found she was glad of that fact. She wanted to spend her honeymoon with her new husband, not suffocated by fellow travelers. A calming trip was just what she needed after the grand affair that was their wedding. She really shouldn’t have expected anything else; Rebekah had inserted herself as unofficial wedding planner after all.

She was admiring the town in the distance from the porch of their villa, watching the locals go about their day when Klaus stepped up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist.

“There’s a lovely little restaurant down by the beach that I can smell from here. It appears to be just as good as the last time I was in town, if you’re ready for dinner,” he said, breath hot against her neck.

Caroline tilted her head, looking at him curiously. “You’ve been here before?” she asked, quickly continuing when he opened his mouth to answer, “Actually, never mind, of course you have.”

Klaus chuckled, placing a soft kiss to her cheek before pulling away. “If you had taken me up on my offer to show you the world earlier then you could have been as well, love.”

“Whatever you say, _Aladdin_. Let’s just head to dinner then, I’m starving. And not for _that_ ,” she added when he furrowed his brows at her in question and slight concern.

They had a cooler of blood inside and Caroline had satisfied her thirst when they had first arrived. It had been a bitch to get through airport security, but thankfully TSA agents were still unfamiliar with vervain. Klaus should really know better than to question her on that matter anyway. It had been years since Caroline had a hunger slip, and she wasn’t planning on letting that happen again any time soon. Or ever.

“Alright, love. Perhaps after dinner we can satisfy a different type of hunger?” he teased, shooting her a smirk as he started walking towards the buildings ahead of them.

“Klaus! We just-! Seriously? You’re ridiculous!” she sputtered as she hurried after him.

He was chuckling when she caught up to him. “It's our honeymoon, what did you expect?” He sent her a lecherous grin that made her want to smack it off his face; in a loving way, of course.

“Apparently too much,” she grumbled, wrapping her arm around his. She frowned in confusion when he moved to slide her hand down until it was grasped within his. “Klaus?”

“The locals frown upon displays of public affection,” he explained, squeezing her hand reassuringly.

“Oh. Well, I hope it's not too much for me and I can keep from throwing myself at you and demanding you have your way with me,” she said, voice completely serious even as a grin spread across her face.

“Mmm, it's a good thing I didn't marry you for your sense of humor, sweetheart.”

“Shut up!” she laughed, swatting him in the stomach.

“They also dislike displays of anger,” Klaus added, rubbing the battered area with his free hand in a mock display of hurt.

Caroline side eyed him for a moment before replying. “I'm not sure if you're just saying that or not, but I'll take your word for it. This time.”

“You have my endless gratitude.”

“Yeah, yeah. This food better be amazing, Klaus.”

“I assure you, only the best for my wife.”

Caroline found herself blushing as she had every other time he had called her by the new title. She wondered if she would ever get used to it; or if she even wanted to.

* * *

 

After dinner- which was as good as Klaus had claimed, of course- they found themselves wandering the street, checking out the sights, peering into stalls and shops on their way back to the villa. Caroline was admiring the town’s signature dolphin statue- reminding her that she still needed to try out their private beach later- when she noticed that Klaus was nowhere to be seen. They hadn't been walking hand in hand like earlier, but he had always been in her line of sight before. Thinking he wouldn’t have gone far without her, Caroline started backtracking, looking in the windows of the stores and between buildings along the way they had come.

She was beginning to wish she had Klaus’ sense of smell for once when she finally saw him, standing in the small alley between two buildings.

With another woman.

Caroline didn’t know why, but something told her to stay where she was and watch without revealing her presence. That same something made her undead heart race and the stolen blood in her veins run cold.

The woman was clearly a local, wearing a sort of shift dress Caroline had seen on many of the woman around town, hers a bright orange with a red fabric wrap around the waist. There seemed to be a more intricate pattern on the front and neckline than most other similar dresses Caroline had seen, but it was difficult to tell in the dimming light of dusk and the shadows of the alley. She seemed older than Klaus- at least by way of physical appearance- but not by much, and Caroline knew she would be considered beautiful no matter what culture you asked. There was something about the woman that made Caroline wary, and not just the familiar way in which she was interacting with Klaus.

Speaking of which… Caroline didn’t know Balinese- besides the few phrases she had picked up on the plane in between naps and dealing with an overly handsy hybrid- but by the way Klaus and the woman spoke they clearly knew each other. The woman laying a hand on Klaus’ arm as she smiled widely at him- which he returned just as broadly, white teeth bright in the dying light- seemed much too familiar and… touchy, especially for a people that apparently frowned upon PDA.

Caroline continued to watch, heart sinking further as the woman pulled something from inside the waist wrap, handing it to Klaus with a look of slightly worried anticipation on her face. Klaus took the item cautiously, inspecting it carefully before grinning once again at the woman in earnest. Caroline wished she could tell what it was, but the item was wrapped in some sort of cloth and at a poor angle from her hiding spot at the corner of the building. Whatever it was, Klaus must have thought it precious, as he gingerly wrapped it back up and placed it inside his pocket, exchanging a few more words and another out of character fond smile.

Baffled, but still convincing herself to not be overly anxious about the odd scene, Caroline started to pull back- ready to head back into the street and wait for Klaus as whatever had just occurred was clearly ending- when the woman grabbed Klaus’ right hand. Caroline’s eyes went wide, breath stuck in her throat as her mind whipped back and forth between thoughts of how inappropriate that was according to Balinese culture and what did that then mean, and how Klaus was definitely going to kill that woman for touching him.

As she stood there shocked and torn between which idea was worse, the woman brought Klaus’ hand up to her face as she bowed her head, pressing the back of his knuckles to her forehead and nose, looking up at him with a meaningful expression before slowly releasing him and straightening. Caroline felt like time stopped, that moment going on forever as she watched, feeling like she was intruding on something special. And that feeling broke her heart.

Klaus continued smiling and gave the woman a nod before uttering the words Caroline recalled meant ‘goodbye’ and turning to leave. Before she could be spotted, Caroline gathered herself and left. _Fled_ would be the most accurate term. Barely sparing a second to glance around her, she used her supernatural speed to flash back to the villa as fast as she could, reaching the front door right before the tears began. She wasn’t sure how she ended up on the beach, everything a salty blur, but that’s where she sat, feeling a strange kinship with the black sand; the color mirroring her mood perfectly at that moment.

What had just happened? Her mind raced, searching for an explanation, anything other than the one that kept forcing its way to the forefront of her thoughts.

_It was all a trick._

It had to be, it was the only thing that made sense. Klaus, the evil hybrid, the man who killed his way through one thousand years, had tricked her. Like the times she had played Blonde Distraction, he was now doing it to her, in spectacular form; it was only fair, right? It was certainly more plausible than a simple girl from a small town catching the eye of the most powerful being on the planet, being able to make him want to change, being able to remind him how to love.

Suddenly it made sense as to why he was so adamant to have their honeymoon there.

She was a fool.

They had all warned her. Bonnie, Elena, Stefan, hell even Katherine had made a comment or two about what a bad idea getting involved with Klaus was. And she hadn’t listened, had thought she was somehow special, able to do what no one else had before.

But she was just Caroline. Second choice, second rate. Always the one left behind, discarded and cast out like last week’s blood bags.

What an idiot.

Maybe he did like her though, maybe he had thought she was worth pursuing.

For fun.

For the thrill of the chase, and now that she had let herself be caught, well. What was the point in keeping up the charade anymore?

She wondered if he would continue to lead her on, pretend to care, or if this ‘honeymoon’ was just a last hurrah for him. Caroline felt sick to her stomach at the very idea.

She feel for him, was _in love_ with him, and even now, in the face of what she had seen- the woman he allowed to touch him, who did so in a country where it was all but forbidden, who he smiled so sincerely at when his true smiles were usually so few and far between, who gave him a gift he seemed to truly desire, who he had left her to meet with- she loved him still.

A small part of her whispered that she was wrong, that Klaus wouldn’t do that, wouldn’t betray her. But old insecurities half buried are easily dug up, and Klaus had handed her the shovel.

So there she sat, head buried in her knees, arms clutching at her legs like a lifeline as she sobbed on the beach she had so recently thought to be the most beautiful sight she had seen. Now it was ugly, a span of glorified dirt that she wished she had never set eyes on.

“Caroline?”

Her whole body went tense, sobs catching in her throat as she tightened her grip in an attempt to anchor herself from the torrent of emotions cascading down on her.

“Caroline, sweetheart, are you… Are you crying?”

Unable to hold back at his sweet and worried tone- fake, all pretend- she broke down again, new tears following established paths down her cheeks and nose, dampening her dress even further. She flinched when he put a hand on her shoulder, feeling a perverse satisfaction at his hurt inhale.

“Caroline, what- what is the matter?” There was a pause and she could feel him hovering over her, unsure. “Did I... did I do something to upset you, love?”

He sounded so pained and remorseful, Caroline had to remind herself of the pain he had put her through in order to not pull him into her arms in an attempt to soothe him. Instead she scoffed, the sound harsh and raw after her crying. “As if you don’t know,” she rasped, voice rough and angry.

“Caroline?”

“Stop saying my name!” she demanded, knuckles going white as she held her legs tighter, nails digging into her skin. As sudden as her outburst was, she quickly deflated, hands falling slack at her side, head remaining bowed on her knees as the sudden surge of energy left her. “Was it ever real?” she asked, barely a whisper, though she knew he would hear.

“Car- was what ‘real,’ love?” He sounded worried.

“Did you ever love me?”

There was a sharp intake of breath before she felt him drop to the sand in front of her, coarse grains shifting against her feet. “Caroline!” He reached forward, gripping her shoulders tightly and pushing them back in an effort to get her to raise her head and look at him. “What on Earth are you talking about?!”

Caroline kept her eyes down, refusing to look up and see the pity- and perhaps sadistic glee- she was sure would be reflected back at her. “I saw you. With that woman.”

“What do… You mean Ida Ayu Suardika?”

Caroline didn’t need to know her name.

“Sweetheart… What do you think happened?” he said slowly, hands unrelenting in their hold on her.

She forced herself to meet his gaze, eyes hard and glaring. “I saw the way you looked at her, _smiled_! And she _touched_ you. And you let her! _You_!”

His hands fell away, and she was sure he was going to laugh, tell her it was fun while it lasted, leave her stranded on a tropical island. Instead he spoke seven familiar words that she would never forget: “You really think that low of me?”

She could do nothing but stare in surprise.

“Or is it that you think that low of yourself?”

Tears fell unbidden once again, his words hitting home hard. She did, she did think that lowly of herself. She was still that sad, lonely seventeen year old girl, thinking she didn’t deserve better than the scraps- of love, attention, affection- that she got.

“Oh, Caroline.”

She let him pull her into a tight hug, pressing her firmly against his chest. Caroline gripped the back of his shirt and she sobbed, tears staining his shirt.

“That woman- Ida Ayu Suardika- she’s a powerful witch, one I have been acquainted with for the past hundred or so years. I left something with her years ago for safekeeping, and I was meeting with her to collect. She’s an old friend, if someone such as myself can be thought to have friends,” he said, and Caroline could hear the smile in his voice as he attempted to soothe her with a bit of humor. She was annoyed to say it worked, her own grin trying to curl along her lips. “It’s for you, actually,” he said, voice wry as he shifted to reach into his pocket and pull out the item.

Caroline sat back a little so she could see, feeling embarrassed and timid. She watched Klaus unwrap the bright blue cloth, revealing a necklace, a purple teardrop gem the size of her thumbnail hanging from the elegant silver chain.

“It’s spelled amethyst,” Klaus continued, unclasping the chain. “It’s for protection, it hides the wearer from location spells and repels minor destructive spells.” He held it up in a silent request to place it around her neck.

She acquiesced, moving her hair to one side of her neck as he leaned forward to fasten it.

“Of course it doesn’t work if the person looking for you has a sample of your blood. That’s why it was useless to me when Mikael was after me.” Klaus fixed the gem to sit flat where it hung just below her collarbone before looking up to meet her eyes once more. “I want to protect you from everything I can, Caroline. You mean more to me than my own life. _I love you_.”

Silent tears rolled down her cheeks even as she smiled up at him.

“And that gesture of touching my hand to her forehead? It’s a sign of respect; mostly used towards an elder,” he said, a wry tint to his voice that made her huff a soft laugh.

“I don’t deserve you,” Caroline whispered, looking up at him with wet eyes.

“I think you have that backwards, love,” he replied, threading a hand through her hair till he was cupping the back of her neck. He smiled softly at her frown, continuing before she could respond with more self deprecation. “Maybe we deserve each other, then.”

“I can accept that,” she said with a hum, allowing him to pull her closer and close the distance between their lips with a sweet kiss, full of all the love and devotion she had doubted existed.

Never again.

* * *

 

“Sweetheart, I don’t know why you dragged me to this forsaken tourist trap. There are hot springs on this island, wouldn’t you rather visit them?”

Caroline rolled her eyes as Klaus groused beside her on the forest path. “It’s not a ‘tourist trap,’ Klaus, it’s a temple. And a forest sanctuary.” At his annoyed huff she continued, “Plus there are monkeys.”

“They probably have rabies. And fleas.”

“I highly doubt the Original Hybrid can contract rabies. Though you are half werewolf, so the flea part…”

“ _Caroline-_ ”

“Actually, maybe we should start taking precautions against fleas? Like those drops you put behind the neck. Maybe we should consider deworming you too now that I think about it-”

“Caroline!”

She laughed as she dodged his grab, darting down the path ahead at human speed. “Careful Klaus, no touching remember?”

“Oh, I’ll show you touching, lo-!”

Caroline almost fell over laughing as the cluster of bananas she threw back at him hit their target, a few splitting open against his chest and drawing the attention of the nearby troop of monkeys. Klaus let out a strangled roar as he was quickly overrun by the hungry creatures.

“Caroline! When I get my hands on you...!”

“I look forward to it,” she yelled with a laugh, hurrying away from the scene, anticipation heating her veins.

After all, even though Klaus had caught her once, that didn’t mean the chase wasn’t still on. And it was most certainly still thrilling.


End file.
